In brief
- Modveon launched Sivar in El Salvador on 29 September, an app for verified citizens that also sends money from the US for a flat $2 fee.
- Transfers run on Coinbase infrastructure and settle in a stablecoin on Base, with cash-out at more than 1,000 locations in El Salvador.
- The National Bitcoin Office said the same day that the government has no plans to launch or operate any bitcoin, crypto or stablecoin wallet.
El Salvador has a new app for sending money home. On 29 September, the government and the Palo Alto company Modveon announced the national launch of Sivar, which combines identity-verified accounts, local communities and official announcements with a way for US residents to send money to El Salvador for a flat $2 fee.
Modveon signed a five-year agreement with AAB, a Salvadoran public institution, to develop, operate and expand the app. The company says more than 25,000 Salvadorans tested it before launch. Users verify their identity with the DUI, the national identity card.
How the $2 transfers work
According to Coinbase, which is Modveon’s payments partner and, through Coinbase Ventures, an investor, the remittance flow runs on its infrastructure end to end. Senders fund transfers through Coinbase Onramp, each user gets a non-custodial wallet inside the app, and transactions settle in stablecoins on Base, the layer 2 network built by Coinbase. Recipients can cash out at more than 1,000 locations in El Salvador. Coinbase says the crypto side stays hidden from users. Coinbase’s payments infrastructure also powers the stablecoin checkout Coinbase launched with Citi for corporate clients.
Sivar’s fee schedule sets the $2 processing fee on cross-border transfers of $25 or more, paid by the sender. Transfers between users in the same country are free. Cash withdrawals at PuntoXpress agents cost $0.25 plus 0.5% of the amount. Funding a wallet through a logged-in Coinbase account is free, while Apple Pay or Google Pay carries a 2.5% network fee.
The market is large. Salvadorans abroad sent about $9 billion home in 2025, some 92% of it from the United States, according to the release.
Bitcoin Office: no state wallet
A Bloomberg report framed Sivar as a government move from bitcoin to dollar stablecoins. The National Bitcoin Office replied on X on 29 September, quoting Bloomberg’s post on the story: “The Government of El Salvador has no plans to launch or operate any bitcoin, crypto or stablecoin wallet.” It added that all state involvement ended with the recent sale of Chivo Wallet to a private operator.
The statement does not name Sivar or Modveon. Under the agreement, Modveon operates the app, and Coinbase says it supplies the user wallets. The release still presents Sivar as a launch by the government and Modveon together.
Modveon’s roadmap includes bill payment, merchant payments and payments between citizens and the government, subject to partner and regulatory approval. Those are the next features to watch.
